Long time reader, first time poster...
I just recently moved and need to install a new alarm system in my new house. I am trying to weigh the pro's and con's of the ELKM1Gold versus an HAI Omni Pro II. Obviously the Omni is more expensive. However, if you get a meaningful benefit from going with the omni, then the extra cost can be justified. This will be a DIY install and programming.
About my installation: House was built in 1946 with hand troweled plaster walls and it will be very difficult to run new wiring. Consequently, most of the sensors will be wireless. I estimate that I will have somewhere about 15-20 sensors throughout the house. 3 or 4 of those zones may be wired in the basement. There will only be one control panel and it will be located in the kitchen. I would like for the system to integrate well with Charmed Quark and I will create ELK or Omni screens for CQC. While I can certainly run the automation side in just CQC, I'd like to offload as much as possible onto the controller I choose. My windows system is stable, but finding inputs is tough. ELK and Omni both make that easier.
Lighting will most likely be Leviton VIZIA-RF.
HVAC integration is a little tricky. I have 3 cooling zones and 4 heating zones. Cooling is forced air, heating is a gas fired boiler with radiators throughout the house. Unfortunately, I have a ton of thermostats scattered around the house. Most of the thermostats control either heating or cooling, but rarely both. For the ones that control both heating and cooling, the AC is in the attic while the relay for the heating is in the basement. My assumption is that this would make using the RCS thermostats difficult. The new Z-wave thermostats from HAI looked interesting.
So, can anyone give me some insight into the strengths of ELK vs Omni or vice versa?
Thanks in advance...
I just recently moved and need to install a new alarm system in my new house. I am trying to weigh the pro's and con's of the ELKM1Gold versus an HAI Omni Pro II. Obviously the Omni is more expensive. However, if you get a meaningful benefit from going with the omni, then the extra cost can be justified. This will be a DIY install and programming.
About my installation: House was built in 1946 with hand troweled plaster walls and it will be very difficult to run new wiring. Consequently, most of the sensors will be wireless. I estimate that I will have somewhere about 15-20 sensors throughout the house. 3 or 4 of those zones may be wired in the basement. There will only be one control panel and it will be located in the kitchen. I would like for the system to integrate well with Charmed Quark and I will create ELK or Omni screens for CQC. While I can certainly run the automation side in just CQC, I'd like to offload as much as possible onto the controller I choose. My windows system is stable, but finding inputs is tough. ELK and Omni both make that easier.
Lighting will most likely be Leviton VIZIA-RF.
HVAC integration is a little tricky. I have 3 cooling zones and 4 heating zones. Cooling is forced air, heating is a gas fired boiler with radiators throughout the house. Unfortunately, I have a ton of thermostats scattered around the house. Most of the thermostats control either heating or cooling, but rarely both. For the ones that control both heating and cooling, the AC is in the attic while the relay for the heating is in the basement. My assumption is that this would make using the RCS thermostats difficult. The new Z-wave thermostats from HAI looked interesting.
So, can anyone give me some insight into the strengths of ELK vs Omni or vice versa?
Thanks in advance...